Nissan Stadium embraces facial entry

Image: Verizon

The NFL’s Tennessee Titans have introduced facial recognition for faster entry at their Nashville home, Nissan Stadium.

Verizon Business said that the company worked with the Titans to identify a revolutionary technology solution that raises the bar and sets a new standard for ticketing innovation in the sports industry.

With more than 70,000 fans flooding Nissan Stadium on game day, bottlenecks at entry gates caused long wait times, large crowds and, ultimately, frustrated fans. The Titans needed to make an urgent change.

The Titans identified streamlining the ticketing entry process as an utmost priority—not only at the team’s current stadium, but also for the future New Nissan Stadium, to avoid the same issues arising there.

Sam Apple, Director of Stadium Experience for the Tennessee Titans, said, “We analyzed how we could get fans inside the stadium quickly and efficiently, and a lot of that starts and stops with ease of entry and speed of access.

“We live in a fast-paced world where everyone’s trying to do things without delay. At Nissan Stadium, our visitors want to get inside so they can see the players warming up on the field or get to their favorite concession stand.”

Expediting entry would require smoothing out the high-friction points with the implementation of state-of-the-art ticketing technology. Yet, with a diverse fan demographic, the solution had to be easy to use, easy to understand and, importantly, trustworthy.

Adam Nuse, Chief Revenue Officer for the Tennessee Titans, said, “Our fans are young and old. We have to make it really easy for all of them when they come in.”

For the Titans, embracing next-generation biometric solutions powered by Verizon’s 5G Edge Accelerated Access, was the winning ticket.

The Titans teamed up with Verizon and technology partner Wicket to resolve the issue of slow stadium ingress by rolling out revolutionary opt-in facial recognition ticketing.

The stadium installed eight Express Entry gates. For fans who opt in—participation is entirely voluntary— facial recognition technology authenticates guests in near real time, reducing wait times.

Now, a participating fan’s face is their ticket for fast and contactless access into the stadium. “This technology makes it much faster. It’s smooth and enables visitors and their guests to move into the stadium in a much cleaner way,” said Apple.

The ticketing solution reduces typical hold-ups—no more fumbling for tickets or scanning QR codes. On game day, users who already submitted a selfie during opt-in simply enter the stadium via one of the dedicated Express Entry camera lanes.

What’s more, a single person can authenticate up to 12 guests, so a whole party can enter in one go. “A quick sign up on a phone allows one scan for all the tickets for the staff to visually verify, expediting crowd flow,” enthused Apple.

Express Entry also enhances security measures by combating fraudulent tickets, providing staff additional support. “Express Entry when combined with 5G creates a transformative, very secure experience,” said Brian Gorney, Managing Director at Verizon Business Group, Sports and Entertainment.

Titans go from worst to first

The investment is paying off. The Tennessee Titans now boast one of the most efficient and enjoyable stadium entry solutions in the league. The Titans report that wait times have lowered dramatically, giving fans more time inside to enjoy the venue.

Nuse said, “We made some major investments to get people into the stadium quickly and easily, really trying to eliminate those lines. This year we are one of the top in the NFL, so investments coupled with a focus on the fan really shifted us from worst to first.

“Fans come in with a smile on their face when they use Express Entry. They’re just shocked at how quick and easy it is to get through.”

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